WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 26: Hasunbu Seolcho (1)

──────

Blood Demon.

A towering figure who united martial artists of the dark path and force of evil to establish the Blood Cult.

As a result, the force of justice, which had been losing ground, founded the martial artists' alliance. Even Peerless Castle, which possessed the greatest fighting force of any single faction, joined hands with them, and the War Between Justice and Evil broke out.

During the fierce war, the Blood Demon, the Blood Cult's lord, was killed by the combined attack of countless peerless masters.

At the time, the martial artists' alliance and Peerless Castle hunted down every one of the Blood Demon's blood relatives, leaving none alive, so that the Blood Cult could never rise again.

That was what I had believed as well.

“The lord's... granddaughter is alive?”

Evil Heaven nodded with a meaningful smile.

So many shocking things had happened in one day.

The Blood Demon's bloodline still remained.

“You are fortunate. You had the honor of meeting such an esteemed person up close.”

More than fortune, it was astonishing.

Who could have imagined that I would see the Blood Demon's bloodline, which countless force of justice martial artists had tried to eradicate, from so close?

I had wondered why this mad old man had so readily accepted the Omnipotent Godly Doctor's proposal.

“Do not tell your martial brothers.”

“Yes, Master.”

“And you must find it. This concerns not only your dantian, but that person's safety as well.”

The Blood Demon's bloodline.

Her safety was immensely important to the Blood Cult.

That was why they had mobilized even the training cadets to search for the medical herb.

- WoonHwi. What did I tell you?

‘What?’

- You have to choose your connections wisely. Hurry and find the herb.

The SoDam Sword spoke excitedly.

It was right.

This was a perfect chance to become the benefactor who saved the life of someone who might become the next lord.

* * *

Evil Heaven summoned the twins as well to search for the medical herb.

I heard that most of the Blood Cult members belonging to Blood-Nurturing Valley, along with those brought by the Blood-Hand Witch, had been mobilized for the search.

The Tyrannical Blood Brigade Leader, Gu SangWoong, and the Blood-Hand Witch were also desperately searching for it, so everyone had scattered in different directions.

It would have been a waste of manpower to search together.

- But what are you doing here?

I was currently in the cave containing the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster's remains.

Instead of searching for the herb, I was sitting before a campfire and circulating the Innate Cultivation Technique, so the SoDam Sword asked in frustration.

‘I'm circulating my ki.’

- What if someone else finds the herb first?

‘They won't.’

At my confident answer, the SoDam Sword clicked its tongue.

- You should find it quickly. Wouldn't you feel wronged if you dawdled and someone else took it?

‘They won't find it.’

- Why not?

‘The flower buds are buried right now, so they can't even spot them.’

- What do you mean?

‘Why do you think it took three more days, even after they mobilized the mid-rank training cadets to find the herb?’

- You are the one who regressed. How would I know?

‘Then wait. Even the Omnipotent Godly Doctor did not know when Hasunbu Seolcho's buds would bloom.’

The sun had dipped slightly from its highest point, so it was still around the Hour of the Goat.

Even if I went out now, I would only have to wait around in the cold for a long time.

It was better to stay warm here.

Time passed, and the sun began to set beneath a red glow.

- Are you moving now?

‘I'll watch a little longer.’

Once the sun had fully set, small lights appeared at the foot of the mountain.

They were torchlights.

The lights moved about here and there, then soon gathered and headed toward Blood-Nurturing Valley's main hall.

‘Good.’

This was what I had been waiting for.

I took the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword and descended the mountain peak.

At the foot of the peak, it was so dark and devoid of any human presence that the place felt chilling.

- Creepy. Looks like everyone else has withdrawn.

‘Because it's dark.’

- You waited on purpose.

Searching for medical herbs by torchlight alone would be miserable in this weather.

With snow blanketing everything, how could anyone find anything in the middle of the night?

Now, when no one else was searching, was the perfect time.

Whoosh!

Though it was dark, I knew exactly where the herb grew, so I used my movement skill and raced toward it.

It was not as marvelous as Evil Heaven's movement skill, but the Southern Heavenly Swordmaster's Body-Lightening Technique was useful as well.

‘This feels good.’

Even the cold wind brushing past me made my heart soar.

In my previous life, this movement skill was what I had envied most in those who learned Martial Arts.

Running across the snow beneath the soft moonlight was a feeling beyond words.

But the feeling did not last long.

Tap! Tap!

An unfamiliar sound rang in my ears.

It had been coming from somewhere behind me.

- Un Hwi.

‘I know.’

I gave a slight nod at the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword's words.

I had thought everyone had withdrawn, but apparently not.

Someone was following me.

It seemed I would have to shake them off.

“Phew.”

For the first time outside of training, I circulated the Stellar Star Mystic Art to the third level.

A hot energy rose from within my chest and flowed into the Yongquan point on the soles of my feet.

At that instant, my movement skill doubled in speed.

Whoosh!

The scenery flew past.

Unless my pursuer was an Advanced master or above, I thought it would be difficult for them to keep up with my speed.

However,

Tap! Tap! Tap!

The sounds still rang in my ears.

Who in the world was following me?

If they could keep up at this pace, they had to be at least a high-rank warrior.

‘Southern Heaven, can you see who it is?’

I asked the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword strapped to my back.

- ...Remarkable.

‘What is?’

- Some fat woman is using a movement skill at a speed comparable to yours, WoonHwi.

‘What?’

At once, the veiled woman I had seen in the latrine that afternoon crossed my mind.

I glanced back, wondering if it could be her.

‘Ha!’

It really was that veiled woman.

Tap! Tap! Tap! Tap!

I had wondered whether someone so fat could even use a movement skill, but she was gaining on me at an astonishing speed.

She shouted after me.

“Stop right there!”

She was telling me to stop.

This was driving me mad.

An unexpected obstacle had appeared.

If I stopped here, I might have to give up on finding the medical herb today.

- Keep going. With that much weight on her, she cannot run for long.

The SoDam Sword had a point.

No matter how swift her movement skill was, it would be difficult to maintain it for long with that body.

If I stalled a little longer, I might be able to shake her off.

That was when it happened.

- WoonHwi! Watch behind you!

Startled by the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword's cry, I looked back.

A wondrous sight entered my eyes.

The fat veiled woman was gliding straight over the snow, level with the ground like a hawk swooping through the air.

‘What is that?’

What kind of Body-Lightening Technique was that?

She was so fast that she caught up to me in an instant.

She reached out to use a grappling hold.

‘Tsk!’

I twisted my body as much as I could to evade her hand.

But her hand turned red and bent toward me at an unnatural angle.

Smack!

I hurriedly tried to block it with the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword, but her hand was faster.

When her red hand touched my left shoulder, a frigid energy entered me. I lost my balance and tumbled across the ground.

“Argh!”

Crash!

I only stopped after rolling nearly ten times.

- She is stronger than you.

I did not need to be told that. I had already experienced it firsthand.

After rolling around like that, my entire body ached, and I could not rise easily.

Then someone suddenly leaned their face over me.

“I told you to stop.”

‘Ah...’

The fat woman's veil had come off.

Perhaps it had slipped away while she used her movement skill, but her face was exposed. She was prettier than I had expected.

Fair skin and round eyes.

If she had not been so fat, she would have been considered quite beautiful.

That thought lasted only a moment.

“...Why did you chase me? You startled me.”

“What?”

When I acted as though I were the wronged party, she furrowed her brow.

Did she think I would explain why I had tried to shake her off?

Her lips twitched as she frowned, then she said,

“You were hurrying somewhere alone in the middle of the night, so I followed you.”

“What does it matter to you where I go, Young Lady?”

Be firm.

It was not as if I had wronged this woman.

But then she struck at something I had not expected.

“Oh, is that so? But I heard the Venerable One's disciple has a problem with his dantian. You certainly use a movement skill well.”

“...”

This was why I had waited until everyone was likely to have withdrawn. My luck was terrible.

Still, I had an excuse.

“...I used innate life energy to use my movement skill.”

“What? Innate life energy? Are you saying you used a movement skill by exhausting your vitality?”

She asked in shock.

Anyone who heard innate life energy would think of exhausting vitality.

Overusing innate life energy was that dangerous.

“Do you not believe me? Would you like to check?”

I held out my hand.

Anyone who handled internal energy could inject life energy and inspect another person's condition.

They would not be able to verify innate life energy, though.

As I acted confidently, she hesitated as though considering whether to check, then sighed.

“You could die doing that.”

“What can I do? Without a dantian, I have to do this if I want to use a movement skill.”

“It is foolish. If you do not wish to shorten your life by exhausting your vitality, you should not do such things.”

Was she worried about me?

For a retainer of the infamous Blood-Hand Witch, she did not seem like such a bad person.

Though her appetite certainly seemed strong.

“...That is why my master and I are working to heal my dantian.”

At my words, she looked at me with a slightly pitiful expression.

Perhaps she felt sorry for me because I claimed to be using a movement skill while exhausting my vitality.

“May I get up now that your suspicions are settled? My back is freezing from lying in the snow.”

That was not a lie.

It truly was cold.

At my joking words, she gave a small laugh and held out her hand.

I took her hand and rose to my feet.

- What will you do? Give up for today?

The SoDam Sword asked me.

If I brought her along to find the herb, the credit would be divided.

I needed to find it entirely on my own if I wanted the Divine Doctor's plaque and the credit for saving the Blood Cult lord's granddaughter.

‘Maybe I should.’

As I thought that, she spoke.

“So... Young Master WoonHwi, correct?”

“You seem older than me, so please speak comfortably, Sister.”

At that, she looked displeased.

Had I said something wrong?

- My former master said that no matter how old a woman appears, it is best to think of her as younger if you want a peaceful life.

At the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword's advice, I realized my mistake.

The corners of her eyes lifted slightly as she spoke in a sullen tone.

“You are the Venerable One's disciple. How could I do that? Besides, I am not that old.”

“Ah... You looked younger than me, but your Martial Arts are so exceptional that I merely wondered.”

“Do not try to fix it.”

She was quick-witted too.

Women had been difficult in my previous life as well.

“I am Ha Yeon, the second disciple under the Sixth Blood Star.”

She introduced herself with a fist-and-palm salute.

As expected, she was the Blood-Hand Witch's disciple.

“I thought it was extraordinary how your hand turned red. So you are indeed a disciple of the Sixth Blood Star.”

Blood-Hand Jade.

It was the Blood-Hand Witch's speciality martial art.

I had heard that as one trained the hand technique, the hands would become increasingly red until they took on the color of blood.

‘It seems impossible today after all.’

If she was the Blood-Hand Witch's disciple, it would be difficult to shake her off.

Rather than waste my strength, I should make an excuse and wait until tomorrow.

“Phew. I was going to search a little longer, but it is too dark to continue today. I should head back now...”

“You are lying.”

“What?”

“You know where the medical herb is, do you not?”

Her unexpected words nearly left me speechless.

I had not expected her to suddenly press me after we had been speaking so smoothly.

I denied it as calmly as possible.

“If I knew, would I be searching until the middle of the night?”

“Who knows?”

“What do you mean, who knows?”

“I searched for nearly twelve hours today. During that time, I encountered the Venerable One about twice.”

“Ah...”

This was becoming a little worrying.

“But strangely enough, I did not see you even once, Young Master.”

“It must be a coincidence. I am not the type who stands out.”

She smiled sweetly at my words.

“How could that be? Among those searching for medical herbs, how many are wearing training cadet uniforms?”

Including the twins and me, there were three.

This woman was smarter than she looked.

“How strange, is it not? You appear just as everyone is withdrawing, then begin searching for the medical herb.”

“It is a coincidence, but I can see why it would look suspicious.”

I had to act unaffected.

I could not show any signs of wavering.

“You are looking for a medical herb, yet you can somehow search without brushing away the piled-up snow even once?”

“...”

When I said nothing, she spoke in a meaningful tone.

“One last decisive thing. While following you, I noticed that you did not look around even once. You only used your movement skill while looking forward, as though you had a destination.”

The SoDam Sword sighed.

- What will you say to explain that?

This woman was too intelligent for any excuse to work.

It seemed pointless to deny it any longer.

“You are truly clever, Young Lady Ha.”

“Are you admitting it?”

“Phew. If you observed that much, there is nothing I can say to explain myself away.”

Her face brightened at my words.

She looked delighted.

“Then you do know where the medical herb is? You do, right?”

“I am not certain, but there is a place I suspect.”

“Then let us go together!”

She spoke excitedly.

I immediately hardened my expression and replied,

“Why should I?”

“What?”

“I need the Divine Doctor's plaque, and this is a perfect chance to earn the credit for helping an esteemed person. Why would I need to divide that between us?”

I spoke honestly.

“That is petty!”

“What is petty about it? You are the one being pettier by trying to ride in my carriage for free rather than finding it with your own strength.”

“...”

“It seems today is already a lost cause, so I will return.”

“Are you really going to act like this?”

“Yes. I am.”

“Hmph! Then from now on, I will keep following you until you find the medical herb.”

“...Do you truly want the credit that badly?”

“Credit? Ha!”

At my words, she made an odd expression before answering,

“It is not because of the credit. I want to save the person I serve. Is it wrong to want that much?”

The person she served was probably the Blood Cult lord's granddaughter.

The Sixth Blood Star, the Blood-Hand Witch, must have protected her all this time.

I thought Young Lady Ha Yeon might be close to her.

Still, the credit was mine.

“I will save her, so you need not worry.”

“You are too much.”

Her face flushed, and she bit her lip hard.

Then she tried to persuade me.

“Do not be like this, Young Master. I will give you all the credit and the Divine Doctor's plaque. Let us go together. That should be acceptable, should it not?”

“You will give me the plaque and the credit?”

“Yes. Even if we find it together, the credit will not disappear. And who knows? If we are fortunate, the Divine Doctor may give plaques to both you and me.”

That was not impossible.

Even the Omnipotent Godly Doctor could not do anything if we said we found it together.

He had declared it himself, so he had to keep his word.

“If that happens, I will give you the plaque I receive as well. Then you will have two of them.”

Her words made my ears perk up.

Not one, but two plaques from the Omnipotent Godly Doctor.

That was not a bad offer.

- That is good enough. Accept it. It looks like she will keep following you anyway.

‘I will make her wait a bit first.’

If I immediately accepted, I would look greedy.

- No matter what you do, you already look greedy.

A person could have desires.

In any case, with terms like these, taking her along seemed acceptable.

I pretended to consider it, stroking my chin and closing my eyes.

“Phew. I do not know whether I can trust you, Young Lady.”

“Tsk. Why are you so suspicious of people? Then what would make you trust me?”

I only said that because it felt awkward to accept immediately. What did suspicion have to do with it?

She looked at me anxiously.

Did she really want to share the credit that badly?

“Just in case, do not think of running away or trying to shake me off. You know I am much faster than you, even if I do not look it.”

‘!!!’

The moment I heard her words, a good idea came to mind.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Young Lady, how about we do this?”

“Do what?”

“To strengthen our trust, let us add one more thing besides the Divine Doctor's plaque. We might not receive plaques, after all.”

“Add one more thing? What?”

Her eyes narrowed.

She seemed uneasy for no reason.

“Teach me the Body-Lightening Technique you used earlier, the one where you flew straight toward me like that.”

“What?”

I wanted that Body-Lightening Technique that accelerated so suddenly.

It had looked like a hawk flying through the air.

“Ha!”

Young Lady Ha Yeon was dumbfounded.

Was it my imagination, or did it seem as though steam was rising from her head?

* * *

Young Lady Ha Yeon and I headed toward where the medical herb was.

In the end, she reluctantly accepted my proposal.

[You do understand how rude it is for a martial artist to demand another person's Martial Arts, do you not?]

[I understand.]

That was why I had deliberately made such a proposal.

If she refused, she would have to return. If she accepted, I had narrowed down her choices until she had no option but to teach me that mysterious Body-Lightening Technique.

- You are no pushover either.

Even the SoDam Sword clicked its tongue at my little scheme.

[Fine. I will teach you. But I have a condition.]

Her condition was simple.

I was not to use the Body-Lightening Technique she taught me carelessly.

I was to use it only in true danger, or, if I used it, I had to kill my opponent without fail.

She had seemed kind, but a force of evil martial artist was still a force of evil martial artist.

In the end, she was telling me not to reveal the Body-Lightening Technique as much as possible.

The condition was acceptable.

A movement skill that accelerated like that was suited to being used as a trump card anyway.

‘It was a good deal.’

Tap! Tap!

As we matched our pace and used our movement skills, Young Lady Ha Yeon asked me,

“Young Master... You have not told anyone about what happened earlier today, have you?”

It seemed the incident in the latrine had been weighing on her mind.

“I am considering telling someone because I received one less silver coin than I should have.”

“That is petty!”

Her face turned bright red as she shouted.

It had only been a joke. She was getting worked up.

“Well, I received something better, so I will erase it from my mind.”

“Really?”

“I promise. Hm, but surely you did not follow me just to ask about that?”

“What do you mean, just that? It is important to me!”

She really did not want anyone to find out.

Then again, I would not want anyone to know I had secretly eaten jerky in a latrine either.

“Are we not there yet?”

“We are almost there.”

I had heard that we merely had to enter between these two mountain peaks.

Then, in front of the frozen waterfall...

“Wow!”

Young Lady Ha Yeon gasped.

When we entered between the peaks, a broad snowfield appeared before us. Purple buds pierced through the snow, raising their heads amid the white expanse.

It was Hasunbu Seolcho.

“We found it. Young Master, to think it was in a place like this.”

Her face shone as she did not know what to do with herself.

Was she so happy because she had earned credit?

Or because she could save the Blood Cult lord's granddaughter?

“Now, we can harvest it and return...”

- Un Hwi! Throw yourself forward!

‘!?’

At the Southern Heavenly Steel Sword's cry, I instinctively used a Body-Lightening Technique and hurled myself forward.

I could not sense any presence. What was this?

Then it happened.

Tap, tap, tap!

“Urgh!”

Before I could even turn my head after dodging forward, someone rapidly sealed my pressure points.

I collapsed forward in that state.

Just as my consciousness began to grow hazy, hot innate life energy surged from within my chest and spread through my sealed pressure points.

A sound reached my ears.

Tap, tap, tap, tap!

The sound of hands striking one another.

“Who are you people? Ah!”

Young Lady Ha Yeon's voice followed.

Thankfully, she seemed to have escaped the ambush. She was stronger than I was.

“Stop right there!”

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap!

The sounds of movement skills racing over the snow grew fainter.

It seemed she had pursued those who had ambushed us.

Soon, crack, crack sounded from the pressure points on my back that had been sealed, and my stiff body loosened.

‘Is this the effect of innate life energy?’

I had not known it could even release sealed pressure points on its own.

Innate life energy seemed to possess many unknown effects.

- This is not the time for that, WoonHwi. Look over there. The ones who ambushed us pulled up the herbs and fled.

As the SoDam Sword said, several Hasunbu Seolcho plants that had been above the snow were gone.

They must have followed the two of us.

The fact that even Young Lady Ha Yeon, whom I considered an Advanced master, had failed to notice them meant they were masters equal to her or stronger.

- Hurry and chase them. They are taking your credit.

The SoDam Sword urged me on.

But did I really need to chase them?

- What?

I approached the remaining Hasunbu Seolcho protruding from the snow.

Five yellow beads showed between its purple petals.

The corners of my mouth rose of their own accord as I looked at them.

‘That was not fully grown Hasunbu Seolcho.’

If they wanted to stab us in the back, they should have waited until the end.

Idiots.

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried